The decision will be reviewed by the full commission, and if the commission agrees, imports of Samsung's products could be halted at the border

Samsung hasn't had a whole lot of luck in the U.S. when it comes to its patent disputes with Apple, and a recent ITC case proves that it's luck isn't getting any better.

U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) Judge Thomas Pender found that Samsung has violated four Apple patents, including the flat front face with wider borders at the top and bottom, the lozenge-shaped speaker about the display screen; the translucent images for applications displayed on the screen, and the device's ability to detect when a headset is plugged in.

Apple also tried to say that Samsung infringed on other patents, such as the shape of the phone, but the ITC judge found that those were not violations.

The decision will be reviewed by the full commission. If the commission agrees with Pender, imports of Samsung's products could be halted at the border, and this would then be reviewed by the U.S. president. An appeals court would review the entire case.

"If left to stand, this initial determination could lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices for the American consumer," said Adam Yates, Samsung spokesman. "We remain confident that the full commission will ultimately reach a final determination that affirms our position that patent law must not be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies."

Samsung is currently working on new designs of its devices and sending them to Pender in order to address the patent infringement claims.

The Apple-Samsung patent war began in April 2011 when Apple claimed Samsung was an "iPhone, iPad copycat." More specifically, Apple said Samsung's Galaxy S 4G, Epic 4G and Nexus smartphones infringed on Apple's patents.

Apple worked pretty hard to ban Samsung's smartphones and tablets around the world, and successfully accomplished this in countries like Germany and Australia. Samsung launched a few lawsuits of its own regarding 3G patents, and was also able to lift the ban on its Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia in December 2011. However, Samsung wasn't so lucky in Germany, where the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is still banned.

Back in August, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California reached an unfavorable verdict for Samsung, saying that the South Korean electronics maker was guilty of violating technology patents. In other words, most of Samsung's smartphones and tablets in question were found guilt of copying Apple's iPhone and iPad designs. It was ordered to pay $1.05 billion in damages to Apple.

Earlier this week, Samsung Display decided to cut ties with Apple, saying it will no longer ship LCDs to Apple next year. Its LCD shipments to Apple have been cut more and more over time due to Apple wanting huge discounts, but the recent patent infringement drama couldn't have helped either.